World

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Monday vowed to reverse Russia’s demographic decline and boost its population to 154 million, as he ramped up his re-election campaign in the face of protests. In a new campaign article addressing his core...

Two bills calling for the legalisation of gay marriage were introduced to Australia’s parliament on Monday in a move campaigners said would add momentum to the push for equality. The private member’s bills, introduced by left-leaning...

New Zealand health authorities on Monday admitted they overreacted to an influenza scare on a flight from Japan by quarantining the plane on the tarmac at Auckland airport for several hours. The Air New Zealand flight from Tokyo was isolated...

A widening split in the global aviation industry over an unpopular European carbon tax may trigger a trade war, the head of plane manufacturer Airbus said Monday. “I have to say I’m really worried also as a manufacturer about the...

China’s likely next leader Xi Jinping warned the United States against plans to boost its military strength in Asia as he prepared for a closely watched visit to Washington starting Monday. China’s vice president, who is tipped to...

The Greek parliament in the early hours of Monday voted its approval of a harsh new austerity plan in exchange for new loans from foreign lenders. The vote was not even close, with 199 members of parliament voting in favor, 74 against, and 27...

LONDON — With just over five months to go until the Olympic Games, police in London launched a new anti-terrorism hotline Monday to persuade residents and visitors to shop potential attackers. “Terrorists live amongst us. We want you to...

Temperature readings at one of the crippled Fukushima nuclear reactors have risen above Japan’s stringent new safety standard but there was no immediate danger, its operator said Sunday. Tokyo Electric Power said one of three thermometers...

Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei on Sunday warned the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas against any “compromise” in its fight against Tehran’s nemesis Israel, his official website reported. “Always be wary of...

Fires raged in central Athens on Sunday as protesters against the latest Greek austerity deal battled police. According to Reuters, “The air over Syntagma Square outside parliament was thick with tear gas as riot police fought running...

Slain Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden urged his children to go live peacefully in the West and get a university education, his brother-in-law said in an interview published Sunday. Zakaria al-Sadah, the brother of bin Laden’s Yemeni fifth...

JERUSALEM — Israeli police used tear gas and rubber bullets against stone-throwing Palestinians in the Issawiya district of annexed east Jerusalem on Sunday, police and an AFP journalist said. “Five Palestinians were arrested after...

ROME — Salvage workers Sunday began pumping fuel from the shipwrecked Italian cruise liner Costa Concordia, a day ahead of schedule, officials said. Operations began at around 5:00 pm (1600 GMT) on the wreck off the Tuscan island of Giglio to...

SHANGHAI — A top Chinese official on Sunday vowed Beijing would pursue more balanced trade with the United States, as the country’s Vice President Xi Jinping prepares for an official US visit. Xi, the country’s leader-in-waiting, is...

SHANGHAI — A Chinese village which staged an extraordinary rebellion against authorities last year has taken a key step in a process to freely elect its own governing committee, according to residents. Thousands of residents of Wukan in the...